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Friday, November 5, 2010

So in case you haven't heard yet, Ina Garten's new cookbook is pretty flipping awesome. Never have I gone through a cookbook before and wanted to make every.single.recipe. I have had the book for just over a week, and I've already made 6 recipes from it. And I have 3 more on the docket to make in the next few days. I think I might have a problem.

As I was reading through How Easy is That the first time, I loved the look of these figs, but cried a little inside because figs are pretty much gone around here by this time of year. However, I saw figs on sale at Fresh Market for $3 a pint the very next day! Score! Yes, they were from California and not at all local, but I couldn't help myself. And hey, at least they weren't flown in from Asia or South America.

Last Friday my neighbor came over for some girl talk and wine, and I told her I'd put together a few appetizers for us to snack on. I made the baked fontina (OMG) and these figs. I also put out a fruit salad, but we barely touched it. I'm actually a big fan of fruit salad, but when I have roasted figs and prosciutto and baked fontina with a baguette in front of me, what do you expect?

This is one of the easiest appetizers I've ever made. Cut cut the figs in half, trim the prosciutto into strips, wrap, and bake. Simple and delicious. Roasting the figs really brings out their flavor, and the prosciutto crisps up just a big which is nice. I opted to brush with a little honey and olive oil, then top with a crack of black pepper. I really am not a fan of the word "succulent," but that is really the best word I can use to describe these figs (I'm also not a fan of the word moist, while we're on the subject).

People often ask me for appetizer ideas for Italian pasta dinners that aren't bread-y or carb-y, and I think this would be a great option. I'd love to play around with them even more next time, and maybe add a little goat cheese or blue cheese in there. Now how bad could that be?

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